Summary
If you are tired of getting screwed and ignored by corporate America, learn how I recovered $47,900 in fraudulent charges with the help of Gemini AI. Plus, there is a very good chance that I will be able to collect another $5K from a crooked, unscrupulous Long Beach, Long Island landlord. Seriously. Once we wrap that up, keep reading to see how I used some low stands of pickerelweed as backgrounds in two powerful images.
Note: Copy and technical editing, and formatting for this blog post assisted by Gemini AI. I have never and will never use Generative AI on my photographs.
My Calls
In the last blog post I preferred the tighter Great Egret, Image #1, to the wider version, #2. Why? For the same reason stated by James Saxon: I like the dark moodiness in the image. My top pick by a mile was image #5, the water level Limpkin. I love the simplicity and the almost cartoonish look. Anthony Ardito wrote, #5 probably my fav. Love the get down lows! Thanks to all who commented.
What’s Up?
Photographically, the summer doldrums have arrived at Indian Lake Estates. I’ve worked hard the past few days with very few rewards.
Today is Thursday July 9, 2026. I will be heading down to the lake early as always for another hot, windless morning session. It’s been killing me sitting there patiently looking at the mirror-like surface a Lake Walk-in-Water without a bird to photograph.
This afternoon I drive up to a very lovely Jacksonville Airbnb for a week of photography with several friends. We are all looking forward to the 7,000 pairs of Royal Terns with chicks of varying sizes and the 10,000 pairs of Laughing Gulls, also with young. Whatever you opt to do, I hope that you too choose to have fun and enjoy life. Please remember that happiness is a choice — Byron Katie, The Work.Com
If an item — a Delkin flash card or reader, a Levered-clamp FlexShooter Pro, or a Wimberley lens plate or low foot — for example, that is available from B&H and/or Bedfords, is also available in the BAA Online Store, it would be great, and greatly appreciated, if you would opt to purchase from us. We will match or beat any price. Please remember also to use my B&H affiliate links or to earn 3% cash back at Bedford by using the BIRDSASART discount code at checkout for your major gear purchases. Doing either often earns you free guides and/or discounts. And always earns my great appreciation.
Gear Questions and Advice
Too many folks attending BAA IPTs and dozens of photographers whom I see in the field and on BirdPhotographer’s.Net, are — out of ignorance — using the wrong gear, especially when it comes to tripods and more especially, tripod heads. And the same is true in spades when ordering new camera bodies or lenses. My advice will often save you some serious money and may help you avoid making a seriously bad choice. Please know that I am always glad to answer your gear questions via e-mail. If you are desperate, you can try me on my cell at 863-221-2372. Please leave a message and shoot me a text if I do not pick up.
Done Being a Doormat
I don’t know about you, but I am completely done getting screwed over. A few months ago, we learned of $45,000 in phony checks issued against my Mid-Florida Credit Union account and $2,900 in PayPal gift card fraud. And last August, I leased a place in Long Beach that needed many repairs. Not to mention that the disturbance from the upstairs renters was brutal and non-stop. The landlord did not respond to any of my pleas for help or requests for repairs. Nor did he re-pay me for money I spent on needed supplies that I purchased with his express permission.
I felt like it was open season for scammers trying to disrespect my time, my business, and my wallet. The bank fraud was a nightmare; after hours on the phone with customer service, I got nowhere. The PayPal fraud was infuriating. And the landlord was nothing but a lowlife. I mentioned it all to my younger daughter, Alissa, who told me she had rectified a small money problem very quickly by following advice from Gemini AI. Best of all, it is free to everyone.
I tried it and was amazed. In four seconds, Gemini sent me the info for contacting the CEO and Senior Vice President of Mid-Florida Credit Union, and for filing a police cybercrime report. Eleven days later, the $45,000 was refunded to my account. With PayPal, Gemini advised that I contact a government agency: the CFPB (Consumer Financial Protection Bureau). I did, and ten days later I got a call from the PayPal Executive Office letting me know that all the transactions were officially determined to be fraudulent.
Dealing with that slippery landlord had been bugging me for months. Gemini helped me prepare my legal strategy, compile the evidence, and work my way through the online forms. Working with Gemini is like working with a brilliant free lawyer who responds in seconds rather than weeks. And never sends a bill! Yesterday, I mailed the lawsuit to Nassau County Small Claims Court.
In the old days, fighting back meant spending countless hours pulling my hair out, staring at a blank screen, wasting hours on the phone with uncaring agents, and trying to draft complex legal letters or formal fraud appeals. Not anymore.
I decided to level the playing field by putting my AI assistant, Gemini, to work as my private, 24/7 legal clerk. Instead of getting angry, we got organized. Here is a quick recap of how we turned the tables:
• Beating the Fraudsters: When the bank and PayPal tried to bury me in corporate red tape over unauthorized charges, I used Gemini to strip away the fluff, cite the exact policies needed, and draft ironclad, professional dispute letters that corporate executives couldn’t ignore.
• The Landlord Showdown: When my New York landlord went radio silent on the money he owed me and the endless problems with the rental unit, Gemini helped me draft a flawless, legally sound formal demand letter. When that deadline passed, we pivoted instantly and filed suit.
• Navigating Courtroom Red Tape: If you’ve ever tried to use a government website, you know they are an absolute maze of dead links and confusing jargon. Gemini helped me bypass the nonsense, hunt down the exact, current Small Claims PDF form for Nassau County, and kept me from making critical mistakes—like missing the court’s strict rule that the form must be filled out in black ink.
Yesterday afternoon, Jim and I made the trip into town to drop that official court package into the mail—certified, with a return receipt. It felt absolutely wonderful. I can’t wait to see Edwin in court.
The lesson here is simple: you don’t have to take it lying down, and you don’t have to wage these battles alone. If you stay meticulously organized and use the right digital tools, you can stand up, protect your hard-earned money, and stop letting the slackers ride roughshod over you.
A constant theme in my life for the last two or three decades has been feeling powerless in the face of corporate greed and indifference. Those days are long gone. Lots of folks are down on Artificial Intelligence; for me, it is a blessing.
If you want to put Gemini AI to work for you, just type gemini.google.com into your browser’s address bar. In addition to offering legal and financial advice and help, it is a fabulous search engine and copy editor.
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This image was created by yours truly on 19 June 2026 at Indian Lake Estates, FL. Standing, I used the Robus RC-5570 Vantage Series 3 Carbon Fiber Tripod/Levered-Clamp FlexShooter Pro-mounted Sony FE 600mm f/4 GM OSS lens and the Latest Greatest Sony Flagship Body, the a1 II Mirrorless Camera in full frame mode. The exposure was determined via Zebras with ISO on the Thumb Wheel. ISO 800: 1/400 sec. at f/4 (wide open) in Manual mode. AWB at 7:23:44am on an overcast morning. Wide/AF-C with Bird-Eye/Face Detection performed perfectly. Click on the image to enjoy a larger high-res version. Image #1: Sandhill Crane in front of stand of pickerelweed |
Distracting or Complementary?
I’ve had lots of chances to use low stands of marsh vegetation in my backgrounds this summer. If you are careless, such backdrops can be totally distracting. If you are careful with your choice of perspective and your framing, the results can be magical.
Things to Notice with Image #1
• The side-to-side framing: I moved the tripod back so that I could avoid clipping either side of the stand of pickerelweed.
• The reflection: Moving back also enabled me to include the complete reflection with a nice border below the crane’s reflected head.
• Balance: With the tall, scraggly grasses on the lower left frame edge and the crane on the right, the image is beautifully balanced.
• Tension: The bird looking out of the frame provides a bit of intrigue.
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This image was created by yours truly on 28 June 2026 at Indian Lake Estates, FL. Seated on a sturdy milk crate topped by two old pillows I used the flattened Robus RC-5570 Vantage Series 3 Carbon Fiber Tripod/Levered-Clamp FlexShooter Pro-mounted Sony FE 600mm f/4 GM OSS lens Sony FE 1.4x Teleconverter, and The Latest Greatest Sony Flagship Body, the a1 II Mirrorless Camera. The exposure was determined via Zebras with ISO on the Thumb Wheel. ISO 1250: 1/4000 sec. at f/4 (wide open) in Manual mode. AWB at 7:47:28am on a sunny morning. Wide/AF-C with Bird-Eye/Face Detection performed perfectly. Click on the image to enjoy a larger high-res version. Image #2: Black-bellied Whistling Duck in front of stand of pickerelweed. |
Things to Notice with Image #2
• The side-to-side framing: Again, the framing is perfect—there is nothing clipped on either side of the stand of pickerelweed.
• The blossom room: I left plenty of room at the top to avoid clipping the single pickerelweed blossom.
• The low perspective: Working just two inches above the surface of the water provided an intimate look to the image along with those dreamy reflections.
• The warm, early morning sunlight resulted in spectacular color.
Typos
In all blog posts and Bulletins, feel free to e-mail or to leave a comment regarding any typos or errors. Just be right :).
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